The Cherished Wife



The horse ranch lay on the outskirts of town. It was a vast and open space frequented mostly by the sons and daughters of the rich. Noelle had heard Rowena talk about it plenty of times, yet she had never seen it herself.

Rowena's family was not rolling in dough, but they had enough to be comfortable. Back in the day, Noelle had big dreams for Rowena and would often whisk her off to fancy spots where the rich and famous hung out. However, Rowena once told a story about coming to this ranch at fifteen years old and almost getting stomped into the ground by a horse. That scare kept her away for good.

Noelle was excited at first, dreaming about galloping around. However, when push came to shove, she got cold feet. She had only seen horse riding on television and had never been on one herself before. She had seen some pros in competitions, but that was a whole different league.

Charles picked up on Noelle's jitters and gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. "Don't sweat it. I've got your back. Nothing bad's gonna happen!" He flashed a grin. "This place is super safe, but if you're still worried, you've got me to count on!"

"Yeah, Noelle. If Charles isn't enough, you've got me and Peter here too," Sean chimed in, strutting up without a care in the world. "Peter's way better on a horse than Charles, and he's got good skills." Not one to be outdone, Sean thumped his chest. "And if Peter's off his game, you've still got me. I'm the real deal, even more than those two!"

"Oh?" Noelle's nerves eased up with a chuckle at Sean's antics. "I can believe that Peter might outdo Charles, but I don't believe you claiming to be better than both of them!"

Noelle teased Sean with a playful glint in her eye. "You know, I really think Charles is something special. You'd better up your game, Sean."

Sean let out a snort and clutched his chest in mock despair. Turning to Peter with a feigned look of sorrow he said, "Peter, can you believe these two? Charles just tied the knot, but they're already showing off their love like it's a competition. How is that fair? You didn't go overboard like this when you got hitched."

Peter's friendly smile vanished in an instant, replaced by a stormy frown. His gaze cut through Sean, who quickly realized he had stepped on a landmine.

Gulping nervously, Sean raised his hands in surrender. "Okay, I'm sorry! Isn't that enough? I know I shouldn't have mentioned her to you."

He glanced at Charles, who was not finding any of this funny either. "Do you guys really have to gang up on me? I get it, but it's been years since Tania left us, Peter. Can't you move on?"

Peter's lips tightened, and his brows knitted together. He clearly did not want to hear this. Charles looked equally troubled, especially since the woman Sean mentioned was his sister Tania, who was also Peter's ex-wife. Content provided by NôvelDrama.Org.

"And what about you? Liliana's been gone just as long, so why can't you let go?" The names Tania and Liliana hung in the air like forbidden words, each carrying a weight that none of the three men could seem to release. They all had their secrets and unresolved feelings about the past that lingered.

Noelle felt like she was on the outside looking in, unable to grasp the silent drama that had unfolded among the three brothers. She wondered who Tania and Liliana were and what they had done.